kidder



-2 Sheets--Sheet1.

v r m. w. KI DDE R. Apparatus for Manufacturing Illuminating Gas. N0.l54,552.

Patented Sept. 1

w, W Z M Waizmaw:

2Sheets--Sheei2. M. W. KIDDER- Apparatus for Manufacturing illuminating Gas.

N0.154,552. PatentedSept.i,i874.

" Q v I ifNVEZVTO/B. firm i ings,-and to the lettersof reference marked one, cylindrical in form and of suitable size,

7 and openat the lower .end. The retort is made to rest by means of a flange upou th'e top of coal is consumed above-the grate,-more isautomatically supplied'from the retort.

is either luted on or packed with fusible metal;

to the purifiers, and also with a pipe for the The steam-is produced from an annular UNITE STAT s PATENT OFFICE.

- Mos s w. KIDDER, or BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALE HIS RIGHT TO PERSON NOYES OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT APPARATUS FORMANUl-ACTURING lLtummArme-e s.

Specification forming part of, Letters Patent No. 154,552, dated September 1, 1874 application filed June 24, 1514.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that .1, Moses W. KIDDER, of Boston, inthe county of Sufiolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in GasApparatus; andI do hereby declare that the following is a full, .clear, and exact description thereof, I which will enableothers skilled inthe art to which itpertains to make and use the same, refer ence being'had to the accompanying drawthereon, whichform a part ofthis specification.

5 My invention is as follows: I substitute for the ordinary horizontal gas-retort a vertical.-

being closed at the top by a movable cover,

the furnace. Thelower end oftheretort projects into the furnace .to a point about twelve inches above the grate, and the retort is so arranged in relation to thegrate that, as the The cover of the retort is-removed when charging the retort with coal, after which it The retort is provided near the topwith-"a pipe .for conducting. the gas as it is produced introduction of steam and hydrocarbon oils, :&c., that passes down the center of the retort: to a point a little below the lower end of the said retort, by which the steam and hydrocarbon oils are delivered in the midst of the furnace fire.

boiler surrounding the furnace, or I other suitable steamrgenerator. The hydrocarbons are admitted to the furnace through a pipe con-. 'nectedto the steam-pipe. 4 r The gas produced in this apparatus is drawn from-the purifiers by means of a rotary pump partly filled with heavy petroleum oils,'- -or'. similar liquids, inplace'o'f water, and is forced to thegas-holder, where it may be made to pass through wicki'ngsaturated with gasoline or light naphtha-s, whereby the gas becomes fully charged with the vapors of the gasoconnectedwith the furnace, or by means of a weight or otherwise, as may be desirable.

. Ordinaryeoal-gas has heretoforebee'n used to some extent for heating and cooking purposes, &c., and in these operations it becomes-necessary to combine a portion of atmospheric air, soas to consume the excess'of carbon.

With my improved apparatus, by closing the hydrocarbon-pipe, the gas produced is eminently suited for all heating purposes, as no deposit of carbon canjoccur, and in cooking meats nodisagreeable flavor can be imparted by impe'rfectcombustion of the gas.

The cost of gas for heating purposes produced by this method will be so far reduced as to bringit into general use as a substitute for other fuel. 5 v

' With separate gas-holders both heating and f illuminating gas can be produced by the same apparatus.

. For the purpose of preventing the gas-holder from overfilling, I have arranged on the main supply-pipe to the gas-holder a valve or cutofl', that is chased automatically by means of a projection onfthe top of the gas-holder, and v a suitable connecting mechanism to a lever or handle on the cut-off By means of a rockshaft and suitable levers, with intermediate connecting mechanisms to valves or cut-offs on the steam and hydrocarbon pipes, or equivalent devices, I am able to shut oii" the supply of steam and hydrocarbons automatically at the same time the gas is. shut olf from the gasholder. As the gas-holder descends when the gasflis drawn from it, it causes the supply- "valvefrom the gas-pump to be opened auto .matically, as well as the valves or cut-otfson the steam and "hydrocarbonrpipes', by which arrangement all danger of overiilling and explosions isentirely obviated.

Furnacesor stoves for dwelling-houses constructed upon thisprinciple could be used to perform theirusual oflice of heating in the ordinary way simply by closing the steam, hydrocarbon, and gas supply pipes, and by open,-

r the gas enters theholder in g these .pipes the gas would be produced and drawn to the holder. I

My invention isoperated as follows: After the fire is kindled on the grate, I introduce anthracite orsemi-bituminous coal through the top of the retort, until it is nearly full, when I close the top of the retort, and increase the fire until the steam is generated, which, as well as the hydrocarbons, is then admitted into the furnace. A rotary pump draws the gas produced in the retort through the scrubbers and purifiers, and forces it into the gasholder. Charcoal, peat, sawdust, chips, and the like may be employed, or mixed with the coal, if desired. a

On the drawings, Figure 1 represents a ground plan, and Fig. 2 represents a central longitudinal section of my invention.

Similar letters refer to similar parts wherever thev occur on the dilierentparts of the drawin g.

0. represents the retort, that is covered at,

the top with a cover, I), that can be removed for the admission of the fuel to the retort.

The retort a. is opcli in its lower end, 0, that e repprojects into the furnace d, as shown. resents the ash-pit in the ordinary way. f represents the steam-boiler snrroundin g the furnace d, from which it obtains the heat necessary to convert the water into steamJFroin the steam-generatorf leads a pipe, 9, into the retort a, where it is joined by another pipe, h,

through which the hydrocarbons are ad-' 'mitted. The pipes gand h are joined to a vertical pipe, i, that terminates at a point bctween the grate in the furnace d and the lower end of the retort, through which vertical pipe the steam and hydrocarbons are si multaneously admitted to the burning fuel in the furnace. It represents a chimney leading from the furnace d,'through which escape when it is not desirable to produce gas. The steam-pipe ,g is provided with a valve or cu't-ofl, g,.that is connected to a rod,

I g, and 'a' lever, g{',, -attached3to a rocking pipe 1 into the gas-holder s. 7 is the main inlet-pipe to the holder, and t is the main outletpipe therefrom. The lower part of the gas- .holder contains gasoline or light naphtha, 'upon which floats cotton-wicking u a, (shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1,) so arranged that, as through the inlet r,

and as itescapes through the outlet t, it must I the pro- 'ducts Of-GOmbUStiOD in the said furnace may pass through the wicking, and very near the surface of the naphtha, by which means it be comes fully charged with the vapor of the naphtha, and most capable for illumination. The main inlet-pipe r is provided with a valve or cut-off, r, located between the pump q and the holder 8, as shown in Fig. 2, which valve is connected by means of a rod, 1*, to a lever, 1", attached to the aforesaid rocking. lever I, that may be made'to rest in suitable stationary bearings. To the movable part of the gas-holder s is attached a projecting arm, 4:, that comes in contact with projections '12 'v on the rod 1' as the holder rises and falls. This latter arrangement constitutes an automatic regulator to prevent the gas-holder from being 'overfi'lled, and also admits the gas automatically to the holder when empty, ornearly so. I 1 I As the movable part of the gas-holder rises, i have it so arranged-t t ai -hoathe holder is almost filled the projecting arm *0 strikes the projection o ontherod r, and thereby closes the valve or cut-off 1", thus preventing anymore gas being forced into the holder. As the holder descends to its lowest point, the projecting arm '21 comes in contact with the projection v on the rod 7'", whereby the valve or cut-elf r is opened, so asto refill the holder, as before. The levers r, y, and h' being attached to one and thc same rocking shaft l,.it follows' that the valves 1', g, and h are operated automatically together. I

I do not, however, confine myself to this particular arrangement and construction of the automatic regulating apparatus, as equivalent means may be'used for the same purpose to the sameadvantage.

\Vhat I claim as my invention, angglesire to secure by Letters Patent, is- 5" 1. The valve r ,in the main leading from. the retort to the holder, and the valves g, h, I and their connecting mechanism, the rods 1"" g. h, levers 94'. h W shaft 1, and projections v a e, for the purpose setforth.

2. The vertical retort a, open at its lower end,

and terminatingiin the furnace cl, in com bination with the eduction-pipe m, as and for the I I purpose. set, forth.

3. The combination of the annular boiler f, furnace at, and retort a with the steam-pipe g and hydrocarbompipe 'h, as and for the purpose set forth. I I

4. 'The combination, with the retort a, furnaoe d, and annular boiler f, of the eduetionpipes in and m, as and for the purpose set forth and described. I I I In testimony that I claim theforegoing as my own invention, I have affixed my signature in presence of two witnessesx MOSES W. KIDDER.

Witnesses: I

ALBAN ANnnriN, PERSON Norms. 

